A new upgraded Adelaide motorsport street circuit will cost taxpayers at least $96m as official plans reveal a new track for the MotoGP and Supercars through the parklands.
Premier Peter Malinauskas on Sunday unveiled the new 4.13km, 15-corner track through the city’s inner east that mirrors the old Formula 1 circuit a generation ago.
The Premier, who anticipates continued backlash from parklands protesters, revealed the government will not build a permanent grandstand in Victoria Park for the events, which will be staged within a fortnight of each other in November next year.
A new Tour Down Under stage in January 2028 will also use the modified circuit, which will force at least 377 trees to be cut.
Instead, a new temporary structure will be constructed – its cost unclear until after a public tender – adjacent to the historic grandstand, which race spectators will use.
Technology advances will allow build times to be cut by a third, the Premier said.
The total taxpayer cost is $96m, he said, which he vowed will be delivered on time and on budget.
The MotoGP, which will race a city circuit for the first time, and Supercars Grand Final are expected to inject at least $200m annually into the state’s economy, according to “conservative” government modelling.
Taxpayers will spend a further $15m on other parklands upgrades, including drainage works.
More than 630m fans globally watch MotoGP races, Mr Malinauskas said while bikes will race along the Adelaide circuit including in excess of 343km/h along the 900m Dequetteville Tce “straight”.
“These guys are lunatics,” he said at a briefing on Sunday attended by motorsport chiefs, interest groups and business leaders.
Under the plans, which will subject to public consultation, a new 12m-wide bitumen road will be built between Wakefield St and East Tce, near Rundle Rd, which only bikes and pedestrians will use for the rest of the year.
The Premier, who held secret talks with conservation campaigners, said 377 trees will be removed including 42 deemed “significant”.
But 335 of those trees are viewed as either invasive, unhealthy or dead, including an olive plantation. Another 88 trees will be moved.
A further 22 trees are under investigation for possible removal, 15 of which are significant, Mr Malinauskas revealed. Some protected trees are more than 100 years old.
The government, which has faced mounting local anger to the plans but senior sources said were acutely aware of their “noise”, will plant an extra 10 “mature” trees for every one that is remove.
This means an extra 3393 trees will be planted. Grasslands will also increase by 180 square metres.
Gravel safety areas for bikes will be temporary and safety barriers brought closer to the Supercars track.
New Adelaide Fringe infrastructure will be built for venues including the Garden of Unearthly Delights and Gluttony.
A permanent equestrian feature is planned while public courts for tennis, pickleball, and basketball will be constructed in temporary grandstand areas when it is removed.
Public consultation will also assess types of infrastructure for other parkland areas.
The premier, who didn’t brief the Adelaide City Council before his unveiling but urged them to support the plans, said it was a “better outcome” for the state.
“Other people are saying no one else in the world is doing this so why is Adelaide,” he said.
“We want to demonstrate that we’re capable of doing things that we have ambition and the state is heading in the direction of confidence.
“I don’t just want to live in a state with an ageing demographic who becomes harder to fund. “We need young people working here and … proud of the city they live in. Otherwise what is our point of difference. Yes we have major parklands but we’re investing in them.”
He added: “Do I think that the release of these plans would make the backlash go away from all of those people? No, I do not. But I think the majority of people will think it’s a good thing.”
The O-Bahn tunnel, which travels underneath the north east parklands between Hackney Road and Grenfell St, will shut the day before events and close over its weekends before reopening at 6am on the Monday.
The plans, which have official motorsport governing body backing, will be sent to the Commonwealth government for approval.
The Premier, who said he didn’t think it will stop protests but pointed to a mandate after his election win, said wasn’t legally required but will be undertaken to stop legal action.
The Conservation Council, which held secret talks with both the Premier and Environment Minister Emily Bourke, has concluded a “net nature benefit”.
“For more than 40 years the Adelaide street circuit has generated some of its most famous images in sport,” the premier said.
“In its new era, we will deliver something truly world class – blending speed, safety and spectacular racing.”
MotoGP deputy chief executive, Carlos Ezpeleta said planning was extensive.
“We are incredibly proud of what has been achieved and confident it will deliver a totally new and exciting experience for our riders, teams and fans,” he said.
“We understand a project of this scale will create some disruption, but our goal is for the people of Adelaide to feel proud to host MotoGP and genuinely connected to the event.”
TDU race director Stuart O’Grady said: “It will be fantastic to showcase international cycling on a new purpose-built circuit amid the backdrop of our magnificent city.”
Conservation Council chief executive Kirsty Bevan, said “sustained community pressure has secured an unprecedented nature positive investment” in the park lands.
Opposition spokesman Jack Batty, whose Liberal Party has faced allegations of hypocrisy, called for a “serious period of genuine consultation”.
“We support a MotoGP but not at any price,” he said.
Greens Upper House MP Robert Simms criticised the “sham consultation” and said losing hundreds of trees will “change the character of the parklands forever”.
Lord Mayor Jane Lomax-Smith said the city council would now review the plans but insisted it was a major events supporter.
“The next step for us … (is) to do a proper analysis and provide robust advice so we can make informed representations to the state government during their (sic) consultation,” she said.
The state government announced in February that the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix would call South Australia home from 2027, after it secured the hosting rights in a stunning major events coup.
Sunday’s announcement comes just days after Mr Malinauskas declared his “willingness to smash a few sacred cows” and sideline the “minority view”, insisting controversial parklands development was “hardly the main game” in his quest to grow the state’s economy and population.
In a speech to Australian business leaders in Adelaide, Mr Malinauskas outlined his government’s “mission statement” of “talking about growth in a positive way” and not “just worrying about what’s going on in the rear-vision mirror”.
Public consultation for the new plans open on Monday and closes September 20 before construction is due to start in December.
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